I wanted to give a 'shout out' to Frank van Es at Progressive Suspension.

I had to contact Progressive Suspension about my monotobes last week when they starting 'going south' in a big way real fast. They were exactly 2 years old and purchased from Phat Performance. I had seen Frank's name and extension here on another thread and he was being referenced as a real good guy to deal with if you have issues.

I called Frank with the normal aprehension that one has when dealing with a situation like this...but almost right away Frank put me at ease and let me know that Progressive would back the product! By the end of the conversation...which was held late Tuesday afternoon...Frank was putting a new set of monotubes in the UPS 2 Day Air system and promised that I would have them in time for the weekend! Frank assured me that his concern was to get the bike back on the road...not researching why the monotubes failed, how I had ridden the bike, what I paid for them, where I bought them, when I bought them or returning the bad set.

Fast forward to Friday morning...UPS dropped of the new monotubes as promised! Late Saturday morning I got started with the replacement...and 6 hours later I was taking the bike off of the lift! The replacement went well...as well as any front end job could go! LOL! Nasty and messy...no matter how careful you are! One monotube looked and felt fine, one did not look right or feel right. Anyway...the old ones are on their way back to Progressive Suspension.

The bike rides better than new...I have 940's on the back and OEM height monotubes on the front. A note...I had the lowered monotubes installed on the front when they went bad. I always thought that it rode a little 'harsh' for me...so when I had to replace them, Frank allowed me to get the non-lowered monotubes. A very wise choice as far as I am concerned!

Thanks to Frank and his superb customer service...a great guy (and company) to deal with for just about any suspension issue!

Steve

 

+1 for Progressive and Frank. I posted a couple threads about my experience with buying 940s and replacing the springs and Frank was the Rep that made it all happen smoothly.

My experience with Progressive has been excellent. Over the past 6 years Ive used 5 of their products ,monotubes, 940, 2 sets of 440, replacement fork springs and they have been excellent.

 

progressive is still a company I love to deal with even as time passes they still have their customers satisfaction their #1 priority. Many other big name motorcycle part suppliers have lost my business due to their customer service and how they treat old customers with old parts (past warranty)

I too had a great dealing with progressive recently (replaced my rear shocks springs to a lighter version) . I have been using their products(shocks and forks) since 2009 and will continue to on other bikes I buy throughout the years

 

Hey SCJE8,
Just curious what the problem was with your mono tubes, as I’ve a set sitting in the box. I had planned to install on my Ultra this past winter, but got sidetracked working on my Sportster project. Is there anything I should look for or be aware of regarding the mono tubes? FYI – They are standard height … not lowered.
Thx

 

Hey run1fsr...

I'm not sure what was 'specifically' wrong with my set, but mine were lowered and they were pretty close to the first ones manufactured. When speaking to Frank he stated that there were some problems (although very few) with a small run of tubes and that Progressive discovered a potential problem with packaging and seal damage. Now they are packaged in a way to prevent this damage and you have to remove the protective wrapping (flexible conduit) before you install them. My problem started with a little 'clunk' of sorts Saturday before last...and within 100 miles I was afraid to get on the bike! It sounded as if the entire front end was ready to fall out from under me!

I would not be afraid to use the ones you have in the box. There is a ton of information on the Internet and this forum about monotubes. I hope this helps.

Steve

 

Thanks. As you know, pulling the front end apart on a dresser is a PITA. I just want to avoid having to do it twice

 

+1 on Progressive Customer Service. They have treated me well on a couple of occasions. I don't know if it was Frank or not, but I have always been very satisfied when I needed to talk to Progressive CS.

 

this place has the worse customer service !!!
maybe they got new people working there or something!!!
last year i bought progressive lowered monotubes on 1-11-11 from murray's cycle on ebay for $316.89 for my 2010 flhtk.
I installed them per instructions for 1 inch lower with 3 spacers in each, the bike had a very light clunk when brakin hard, the front end calapsed sat about 2 1/2 inches lower than stock height.
i called progressive talked to there tech's, you are not going to believe what they did, they sent me 6 more spacers to put in the front end.
this company is dangerous, they had a defective product!! i took them out didnt notice anything abnormal about them, i put them back in progressive box an still sittin on work bench .
when i called they acted like it was normal an i just needed more spacers. asked if i could return an swap for stock size onces wich are cheaper price, they said they couldnt do it, that i would hafta go through murrays cycle i called murrays cycle an they said would hafta go through manufacture. what a joke of a company
buyer beware!!!!!https://www.hdforums.com/forum/images/icons/icon13.gif

 

bobcat, i wish you could elaborate this. it might have been one of many things. you said you removed the springs and all was in tact. it just might have been a spacer problem.
and it sounds to me like their customer service tried to handle your situation, they never ignored you and they even sent you more spacers. That sounds pretty good to me.
worst customer service would be someone who just ignores you and doesn't try to help. Your problem seems more like u weren't satisfied with the complexity of the solution to your problem.

 

biggdogg sorry but you should try reading my post a second time, i never said anything about removing spring, are you familiar with monotubes there already fixed the spring is attached to the tubes you just add spacers 3 per side . they wouldnt swap out the monotubes, they would only send me 6 more spacers that would be 6 spacers in each side.
said if i wasnt happy return to murrays cycles i tried they said i would have to go through progressive
these monotubes i have are defective i heard a slight clunk an the front end dropped an did not come back up. it sat about 2 1/2 inches lower than a stock front end. and i used the longer spring for a 1 inch drop